Ekiti State Gov Biodun Oyebanji has ‘addressed the state on the unfortunate incident regarding the murder of two Ekiti Monarchs and kidnapping of Apostolic Faith Nursery and Primary School, Emure-Ekiti and their teachers who were being conveyed home after school were waylaid and kidnapped between Emure-Ekiti and Eporo.
Read below the Text of the Emergency State Address
By
His Excellency
Biodun Oyebanji
Governor, Ekiti State, Nigeria
On the Murder of Two Ekiti Monarchs on Monday, January 29, 2024
Ado-Ekiti – Tuesday, January 30, 2024
Ekiti Kete,
1. As we were coming out of the monthly State Security Council Meeting yesterday, the sad news filtered in that some of our traditional rulers came under violent attack of some armed men somewhere along Oke-Ako-Ayedun Road, and that they might have been kidnapped.
2. As there were no clear and immediate information, I quickly instructed the Chairman of the concerned Ajoni Local Council Development Area, Mr Michael Ogungbemi and other concerned responders to immediately swing to action to get more information and to respond accordingly.
3. Sadly, the information I later received confirmed that indeed, two of our monarchs, HRM Oba David Babatunde Ogunsakin, the Elesun of Esun-Ekiti and HRM Oba Samuel Olatunde Olusola, the Olumojo of Imojo-Ekiti were brutally murdered by the marauders; while HRM Oba Sunday Adebayo Fatoba, the Alara of Ara (Ikole) escaped the murderous attack narrowly.
4. The death of these vibrant, energetic and progressive monarchs is very sad and distressing for me, personally. Before their demise, I enjoyed a very cordial relationship with them in their pursuit of accelerated development for their communities. I have enormous respect for them for their service and commitment to the prosperity of Ekiti at large. May their souls rest in peace.
5. I want to express my deep condolences to the immediate families of the late monarchs, their communities and the entire members of Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers for the loss of these selfless royal fathers.
6. Similarly, just same yesterday, we received another disturbing news that some pupils of the Apostolic Faith Nursery and Primary School, Emure-Ekiti and their teachers who were being conveyed home after school, were waylaid and kidnapped between Emure-Ekiti and Eporo. Security agents are currently working hard to rescue them. They have my instructions to ensure the victims are saved from the clutches of their abductors and reunited with their families very soon and unhurt.
7. As your governor, this new turn of events in our dear State is a very devastating and sad one for me; this is because security has always held a significant priority in our administration and this can be seen in our State being consistently adjudged one of the most peaceful with low crime rate in the entire Federation.
8. I have therefore challenged the security agencies with a firm instruction to fish out the soulless murderers who committed this heinous sacrilege on the soil of Ekiti.
9. As a follow-up to this, Mr President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu was on a long call with me yesterday, to commiserate with the State and to give a firm assurance that everything will be done to ensure such a dastardly act never repeats itself. He is mobilizing security resources to help in bringing the killers to book and in rescuing the abducted children and their teachers. I am very thankful to the President for his solidarity and support at this time. I have also visited the concerned communities and the Chairman of the Traditional Council to commiserate and reassure them of Government’s strong resolve to confront this ugly trend.
10. Ekiti Kete, while these occurrences can be distressing, we should not despair or waver in our steel resolve to work together to fight all violent crimes. As the evil men are unrelenting, we too have to collectively confront their evil enterprise with all the resources in our behest. We must all collaborate to share intelligence and organize community-based security arrangements to complement the State’s security apparatus.
11. As part of the effort to ensure this does not happen again, we will strengthen our support for the security agencies by further enhancing their capacity through the provision of high-grade equipment. We will also strengthen our community-based security organizations and other relevant individuals to fashion out a sustainable and workable system to confront this evil monster once and for all.
12. Finally, I urge all peace-loving people of Ekiti to remain calm and go about their daily activities without fear. Be assured of your security, even, as we all should be vigilant and security conscious.
13. May the family of the departed be comforted at this trying moment and may the souls of the departed rest in perfect peace. We also pray for the quick recovery of the victims who sustained some injuries during the unfortunate incident.
Thank you for listening. God bless.
Biodun Oyebanji
Governor
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